FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.queenscourier.com AUGUST 7, 2014 • The Queens Courier 39 The Unisphere Has Many Friends in Flushing Meadows Corona Park It’s the borough’s most iconic structure. Located in Flushing Meadows Corona Park, the Unisphere is 900,000 pounds of spherical stainless steel in the form of planet Earth. It’s also the thematic symbol of the 1964 World’s Fair, which celebrated technology. However, the Unisphere is not alone. There are remnants of the 1939 and 1964 World’s Fairs throughout the public green space. Some are obvious, such as the New York State Pavilion, while others are obscure, such as the Singer Bowl, which is now a tennis arena called “Louis Armstrong Stadium.” But each one has its own beauty, style and history. Thanks to the NYC Parks Department, The Queens Courier presents the following guide to World’s Fair remnants in Flushing Meadows Corona Park. From 1964: • The Candelas. Located at the marina, these unusual white-roofed domes, inspired by the famous architect Felix Candela, originally housed exhibits by boat and marine companies. • The Form Sculpture. This kinetic stainless steel sculpture created by José de Rivera contains a motor which makes the top piece orbit as viewed. • The Freedom of the Human Spirit Sculpture. This massive bronze statue sculpted by Marshall Fredericks celebrates humankind’s reach for the stars via space exploration, depicted by a male and a female nude with wild swans soaring skyward. • The New York State Pavilion. Built by architect Philip Johnson, this futuristic collection of structures offered observation towers affording magnificent aerial views, a “Tent of Tomorrow” with a road map of New York State as its flooring, and a “Theaterama.” • The New York Hall of Science. One of the few buildings intended as a permanent structure, the curvy walls of this popular museum invite visitors to a fascinating assortment of science projects and ideas. • The Queens Zoo Aviary. A geodesic dome designed by Buckminster Fuller offers a journey filled with greenery and birds of all feathers. • The Rocket Thrower. Created by Donald Delue, this sculpture now serves as the center of the fountain allée. • Terrace on the Park. Originally the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey’s aerial gateway to the fair, with a T-shaped structure standing for “Transportation” and a heliport on the roof, this edifice now serves as a catering hall with panoramic views. • The Unisphere. Designed by NYC Parks architect Gilmore D. Clarke, this 350-ton, 120-foot-high steel globe in a fountain, with three rings circling the globe to represent the first three satellites to orbit the Earth, was constructed by U.S. Steel to celebrate the dawn of the Space Age. • The Singer Bowl. Originally built by the Singer Sewing Machine Company, the Singer Bowl has been renamed “Louis Armstrong Stadium” and is now part of the United States Tennis Association complex, which is open to the public throughout the year except for during the US Open, which last two weeks in late August and early September. From 1939: • Boathouse on Meadow Lake. Home to three unique institutions – the Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival, which holds its annual race in August; The American Small Craft Association offering sailing; and Row New York — the recently refurbished boathouse is situated on one of the park’s two lakes. • Queens Museum. The building that now houses the contemporary art museum was originally built as the New York City Pavilion for the 1939 World’s Fair. The Panorama of NYC, a 1:1,200 scale model of the city and one of the most popular attractions from the 1964 World’s Fair, is on permanent display. This article is part of a series by the Queens Tourism Council that will run periodically until October in commemoration of the 75th and 50th anniversaries of the 1939 and 1964 World’s Fairs, which took place in Flushing Meadows Corona Park. For more information, go to www.itsinqueens. com/worldsfair.
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